Mughal art is no more "Muhammadan"

than Akbar was a "Muhammadan."

It is only as narrow sectarians, of the type

which Akbar and the saints alike condemn,

that we can make any attempt to segregate

the achievements of Mughal art

from the mainstream of Indian culture.

Those sixteenth and seventeenth century manuscripts

and albums are the Ajanta of our millennium;

and their delight is, like Ajanta's,

in the beauty of the visible world

at the noblest heightening of personality. ̂

Introduction

In 1526 a dispossessed chieftain from Farghana in Central Asia named Zahir ad-Din Muhammad Babur (1483—1530) occupied the throne of Delhi after defeating and killing Sultan Ibrahim Lodi. Although Babur ruled for only four years, his successors occupied the Delhi throne until 1858, when the British removed the last Mughal. The expression Mughal is derived from Mongol and became the appellation of the dynasty even though Babur was a Chaghatay Turk rather than a Mongol. He was descended on his father s side from Timur the Turk and on his mothers side from the Mongol Chingiz Khan. It was the Timurid heritage, heavily Persianized after Timur s conquest of Iran, that contributed significantly to the distinct culture that developed at the Mughal court. In its tum Mughal culture profoundly influenced both life-style and aesthetic taste across northern India until the British became the paramount power on the subcontinent in the nineteenth century. For Indian painting in particular Mughal culture and aesthetics proved to be of revolutionary significance. The Mughal paintings included in this catalogue were produced not only for the various Mughal emperors but also for others, whether associated with the court or not.

For most of his life Babur struggled to find a permanent home, and so it is unlikely that he had the time, the means, or the leisure to establish an art workshop. However, his military preoccupations did not distract him from collecting books or pursuing his interest in natural history and in his own language. He has left behind his memoirs, the Babumama, which are regarded as a paradigm in this literary genre. Several references in it clearly demonstrate Babur's aesthetic sensibility as well as his interest in illustrated books and paintings. He was so fond of his books, some of which had been adorned by the greatest painters of Herat, that they traveled with him even while he was on the march. ^ His personal library was inherited by his son Nasr ad-Din Muhammad Humayun (1508-56), who was an even more ardent bibliophile. Humayun too carried a part of his library with him during military campaigns. At least two occasions are known when some of the precious books were looted or went astray. Fortunately they were recovered on both occasions. Two that have survived down to the present time are the Juki Shahnama and a Zafamama that was transcribed by the famous Iranian calligrapher Sultan Ali and illustrated by Bihzad, the greatest Iranian painter. ̂

Humayun succeeded Babur in 1530 but ten years later lost his throne to Sher Shah Sur, or Sher Khan, an Afghan soldier of fortune. In the interim Humayun had

173

FIGURE 21

Prince Akbar Hunting a Nilgae, Mughal, c. 1555, opaque watercolor on paper, 874 x 5Y8 in (22.6 x 13.8 cm), Syndics of the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.

conquered and lost Gujarat and Malwa in 1535-36, and from 1537 he was emh-x)"! with Sher Shah in the attempt to save his kingdom. Nevertheless, he maintained his keen interest in books. As his sister Gulbadan Begum informs us in connection with celebration that occurred soon after his accession, in one of the rooms in the palace at ̂ Agra, built by Babur, "an oratory had been arranged, and books placed, and gilded pen-cases, and splendid portfolios, and entertaining picture books [albums} written ' beautiful character."^ We have no way of determining whether at this stage Huniav was simply a collector of paintings and calligraphy or a patron of artists as well. If ^ memoirs of Jauhar, one of his court servants, are to be believed, then even in 1543 he was in exile, he had a painter with him. ' In that case there must have been others royal employ during happier circumstances at Agra.

Upon losing his throne in 1540, Humayun wandered for some years in Sind and Rajasthan. Despite a nomadic existence in exile, he married, and his son J-ad-Din Akbar was born at Umarkot in 1542. He then managed to go across to Iran, where he was granted asylum by Shah Tahmasp. With the Iranian monarch's military ' Humayun conquered Kandahar and Kabul in 1545. The opportunity to regain his in India came ten years later, when civil war broke out upon Sher Shah's death. H swiftly descended on the plains and captured Lahore, and shortly thereafter Delhi and Agra. His success was short-lived, however, for he died the following year as the result of a fall down the staircase of his library at Delhi.

Above and beyond helping him regain his kingdom, Humayun's exile in ' proved to be of momentous importance for the development of Indian painting. He much of his time in Iran becoming familiar with his Timurid heritage, visiting holy places, seeing the various sights, and meeting leading literary and artistic personalities. He must also have been busy collecting books. It so happens that at about the same f' Shah Tahmasp had lost interest in painting, which left his artists at loose ends. Hu apparently was fairly confident about his own future, for he invited some of them to j his entourage. At least three seem to have done so. They were Mir Sayyid Ali, possiblf father Mir Musawir, Abd as-Samad, and Dust Muhammad, also known as Mawlana Mulla) Dust. Unable to join Humayun while he was in Iran, they did so after he set down in Kabul. There can be no doubt, therefore, about Humayun's genuine interest in painting. He is said to have taken lessons in painting from both Mir Sayyid Ali Í Abd as-Samad.^

Very little is known about the kind of work produced by these artists ' they were in Kabul. ̂ The museum's charming picture of a scholar by Mir Sayyid All may well reflect Humayun's taste in painting. Several other pictures by Mir Sayyid J

and Abd as-Samad and some possibly by Dust Muhammad were very likely rendered

Humayun, as they are strongly Persian in form and iconography and show little evid of the innovations that one notices in the early Akbari pictures. More intriguing is a painting representing Prince Akbar Hunting a Nilgae from the Fitzwilliam Album (FIG. 21), dated by M. Beach to about 1555; the picture is said to record the occasion

when Akbar hunted the animal at Salimgarh on 20 July 1555 on his way to Delhi.* Although it may have derived some of its iconographie features from earlier Persian representations of the royal hunt, the Indian flavor of this painting is unquestionable-

indeed it was rendered soon after the actual hunt, then one must conclude that the style was already formulated during Humayun's brief reoccupation of the throne at All the basic elements of the Mughal style, as evident in the Hamzanama [46}, are in the hunting picture. In any event, after his retum to Delhi, Humayun did estábil®'* studio with at least two Iranian masters, Mir Sayyid Ali and Abd as-Samad, pK«^ jducinl

174

pictures, although it is not known whether any manuscript was prepared. Some sort of experimentation with styles may already have begun under Humayun, but it was left to the genius of his son Akbar to inspire a new mode of artistic expression, which has come to be known as the Mughal style.

PAINTING UNDER AKBAR (r. 1556-1605)

Akbar, whose name means "the great," was only fourteen years old when he ascended the throne of what was a modest kingdom. At the time of his death in 1605 that inheritance had grown into the largest and most powerful empire the subcontinent had witnessed until then. This alone would have been achievement enough for most kings, let alone for a boy who had been bom and raised in adversity and was unlettered. But Akbar was no ordinary man. He was at once a military genius and an astute administrator, a consummate politician and a brilliant statesman, a pragmatic ruler as well as a mystical philosopher, a keen sportsman and an avid patron of the arts and architecture. Above all he was a man of both imagination and vision, which contributed greatly to the creation of a new cultural ambience conducive to the nurturing of a new style of painting. Although a Muslim, he was conscious of the fact that most of his subjects were Hindus, of a com­pletely different culture and with different values. He is probably the only Muslim ruler in the history of the subcontinent who genuinely attempted to establish a rapprochement between the two civilizations in all spheres of life. One of the means to achieve his goal was illuminated books.

Whether he could read or not, Akbar certainly inherited his father's interest in books and from the very start appears to have considered building a great imperial library just as important as expanding the kingdom. Judging by the fact that the preparation of manuscripts was undertaken early in the reign, the unexpected death of his father and his awesome regal responsibilities did not distract Akbar's attention from the studio. While in Kabul he had taken painting lessons from Abd as-Samad, and being an active child, he must have enjoyed the creative aspect of painting. Throughout his life he continued to display a keen interest in painting by examining weekly his artists' achievements, no matter how absorbed in other matters of state. He may well have found the experience both relaxing and therapeutic.

The most ambitious commission undertaken by the royal atelier was to prepare an illustrated copy of the Hamzanama. This was indeed a worthy project for a heroic ruler with an inventive mind. The task was entrusted to the leadership of Mir Sayyid Ali, but impatient with the slow progress, the emperor granted him permission to make the pilgrimage to Mecca and put Abd as-Samad in charge. Despite the fact that there were two different directors and a large number of artists trained in diverse traditions working on the project, the surviving pictures reflect a remarkably coherent style—as if a single person had envisioned the entire series. One suspects that a great deal of this coherence was due to Akbar's personal interest and his own vision. This is clear from the following passage from Mir Ala al-Daula Qazwini's book Nafais al-Maasir (Riches of glorious traditions) dealing with Akbar's reign:

It is now seven years that the Mir {Sayyid Ali} has been busy in the royal bureau of books . . . , as commanded by His Majesty ..., in the decoration arui painting of the large compo­sitions ... of the story of Amir Hamza . . . and strives to finish that wondrous book which is one of the astonishing novelties that His Majesty has conceived of. Verily it is a book the like of which no connoisseur has seen since the amre sheets of the heavens were decorated with brilliant stars, nor has the hand of destiny inscribed such a book on the tablet of the imagination since the

175

discs of the celestial sphere gained beauty and glamour with the appearance of the moon and the s: His Majesty has conceived of this wondrous book on the following lines.'̂

He then describes in some detail how Akbar had p)ersonally planned the format and disposition of the entire book. Clearly Akbar knew what he wanted and made sure his artists could transform his ideas into paintings. The passage also evidences a new kind of connoisseurship that the Mughals and their courtiers introduced during Akbar s reign. Other sources corroborate Akbar s deep involvement with painting, crediting specific technical innovations of the Mughal style to him. According to Abul Fazl,

Drawing the likeness (shabih) of anything is called taswir (painting, pictorializing). Since it is an excellent source, both of study and entertainment, His Majesty, from the time he came to an awareness of things, has taken a deep interest in painting and sought its spread and development. Consequently this magical art has gained in beauty. ...

His Majesty has looked deeply into the matter of raw materials and set a high value -on the quality of production. ... Asa result, colouring has gained a new beauty . . . , and

finish a new clarity. . . .

Thanks to Abul Fazl we also have a detailed account of the imperial workshop as it expanded and flourished under Akbar: "More than one hundred persons have reached the status of a master and gained fame; and they are numerous who are near to reaching that state or are half-way there." He then names a number of the leading masters of the workshop, some of whom are represented in the collection: Mir Sayyid Ali [45], Basawan [57], Madhu [58BI, probably Miskin [63], and possibly Abd as-Samad t55l- I" addition there were calligraphers, illuminators, gilders, margin-makers, and bookbinders, all of whom had to work in unison and harmony to produce the great number of books that their demanding and discriminating patron wanted. Akbar was methodical in the way he examined and appreciated paintings. "Each week," his historian tells us, the several daroghas (superintendents) and bitikchis (clerks) submit before the king the work done by each artist, and His Majesty gives a reward and increases the monthly salaries according

to the excellence displayed." Akbar s primary artistic passion was to own beautifully adorned and

illuminated books. Preparing lavish manuscripts therefore remained the principal task of his calligraphers and artists. His curiosity was insatiable: in addition to such traditional

Persian literary works as the Hamzanama (Saga of Hamza; anon.), the Shahnama (Sagaci

kings; by Firdausi [c. 940-c. 1020]), the Tutinama (Tales of a parrot; by Ziya ad-Din Nakhshabi [d. 1350]), the Khamsa (Quintet) of Nizami (1141-1209), the Gulistan (Rose garden) of Sadi (1208-92), and others, Akbar and the Mughals who followed him were also interested in histories, of their ancestors as well as their own. And so books the Chingiznama (Saga of Chingiz Khan; by Rashid ad-Din [i247~i3^3l)' (Saga of Timur; by Hatifi [d. 1521]), the Zafamama (Saga of conquest; fifteenth century, the Babumama, Babur s autobiography, and others of this genre were copied and illustrated. The Babumama, which Akbar had translated from Turki into Persian, was especially admired, and several illustrated versions are known (e.g., t5o})- As the one thousandth year of the Muslim calendar fell in his reign, Akbar commissioned a history of the first millennium of the Islamic era, the Tarikh-i Alfi (Millennial history), comp» between 1581/82 and 1593/94 [56]. In addition, Akbar had his aunt write an acc^ his father's life and had his own official history detailed by Abul Fazl in the Akba [49]. Similarly, Jahangir's reign would be recorded in Jahangimama, and a super

led of

176

and lavishly illustrated copy of the Padshahnama, recounting the history of Shah Jahan's reign, is now in the Royal Library at Windsor Castle.

Nowhere is Akbar's keen interest in history more evident than in Abul Fazl's statement that Akbar ordered that an album be prepared with portraits of his courtiers and nobles so that those who were deceased would be remembered and the living might gain a sense of immortality. Akbar's sense of history, his own destiny, and the importance of the dynasty's achievements contributed a great deal to the kind of narrative accuracy and observed naturalism that distinguish Mughal painting from both the Persianate and the earlier Indian traditions. Akbar was the first Indian ruler to introduce realistic portraiture in Indian art. Although the genre was known in India from ancient times, most Indian portraits were highly idealized. Some degree of realism is reflected in the royal portraits on the coins of the Kushans, the Satavahanas, and the Guptas, but generally the sculpted and painted portraits that have survived depict the sitters not as they were but as they ought to have looked. They were kings and queens and had to be recognized as such. In Mughal portraits, even though some cosmetic touches are noticeable, by and large the face is not a mask, and we can easily distinguish one person from another. It should be noted, though, that frontal depictions are extremely rare, and the faces are usually presented in three-quarter view or in profile.

The production of a book involved a large number of people with specialized knowledge and talents, and presumably egos, and could not have been an easy affair. It must have been even more difficult when several artists had to work on a single illus­tration. For instance, apart from the overall planning of a book and its layout, which was often complex, especially when the text and illustration dovetail on a page, decisions had to be made before the writing began as to what was to be illustrated. Normally this supervisory work was undertaken by the head of the studio along with the calligrapher, but Abul Fazl informs us that Akbar himself determined the scenes to be painted. Mir Sayyid Ali was the first director of the workshop, but after he was relieved of his responsi­bilities, the mantle fell upon Abd as-Samad, who was probably a better administrator and a more sympathetic teacher. The former is evident from the fact that he was subse­quently appointed the master of the mint and was posted to Multan in 1586 as the finance minister of the province. We do not know what happened to him thereafter or who assumed the leadership of the workshop. One possibility is Basawan, who was a versatile artist and highly regarded by Abul Fazl: "In designing {tarrahi), painting faces {chihra kusha'ï), coloring irang-amezi), portrait painting {manind nigari), and other aspects of this art, Basawan has come to be uniquely excellent." Here again, however, there can be little doubt that Akbar's close supervision of the work of his artists had a lot to do with the smooth running of the atelier.

The marginal inscriptions on one of the pictures in the collection [583], tell us that it was designed and painted by Tulsi and that the figures were drawn by Madha Although the division of labor is somewhat unusual, it does demonstrate how two or more artists worked together on a painting. Generally, a master was responsible for the design of the composition and a second artist, often junior, was entrusted with the task of coloring. While most novices were attached to a master during their apprenticeship, the opportunity to work with various eminent artists broadened the trainees' experience considerably Often the son of an artist was initially trained by the father, as were Muhammad Sharif by his father, Abd as-Samad, Manohar by Basawan, and Abul Hasan by Aqa Riza. Thus, although they were employed by the imperial workshop, the tradi­tional mode of the father teaching the son was continued. However, during their early years they were also assigned to more senior artists to work together on a picture. Artists

177

who were bom while their fathers were in the imperial service were especially favorej as being "house-born" {khanazada).

The Akbari artists definitely represented in the collection are Mir Sayyij yy Basawan, Dharmdas [49I, Sarvan [50A], Tulsi [588], and Madhu [58B]. Several other ' works are attributed with reasonable certainty to Manohar [60], Kesu Khurd {61) and Miskin [63], and one painting may have been done jointly by Abd as-Samad and hi<î ««« ^ bon Muhammad Sharif [55]. Among them Basawan, Madhu, and Miskin were acknowledged masters, Basawan being the most versatile. An unusually gifted artist of the atelier was Dharmdas, who apparently had no arms and painted with his feet.

The major task of the imperial atelier under Akbar was to produce books. Whether their subject matter was Indian or Persian, they were all written in Persian, and naturally the format continued to follow that of the bound codex. The two princr painters until about 1586 were Iranian, so it was only natural that the Persian aesthetic > tradition would predominate. Unlike Humayun, however, Akbar had been bom on InH« soil, and it was clear from his childhood that while proud of his Timurid heritage he was equally conscious of his Indian origin. Thus, as was the case with the buildings he raised and his life-style in general, his paintings too reflected a style that may have borrowed I from the Persian tradition but at the same time had an Indian flavor. So even when Jj Persian models were used—whether for compositions or for landscapes—the Mughal B adaptations differed from the originals in significant ways. There can be no mistaking t» the style of pictures of the Hamzanama., among the earliest Akbari paintings known [46],

is noticeably different from that in which Mir Sayyid Ali was painting in 1555 [45]. T figurai forms and attire as well as the flora and fauna are clearly Indian, natural forms are less flamboyant, and the gradations of color and tone differ strongly from those in Persian paintings.

Europe was another source that contributed significantly to the develop­ment of the Mughal pictorial tradition, especially after 1580. Thereafter there is a much keener interest in depicting forms with fuller volumes, representing a greater depth, and displaying a more conscious awareness of the effects of light and shadows. Even more important is the fact that European art made the Mughal artists realize the possibility of rendering their figures with greater psychological expressiveness than is the case with either the Iranian prototypes or the earlier Indian tradition.

This discovery of the European pictorial tradition was particularly timely, as it was in the 1580s that the imperial atelier became involved in producing the great historical works, the Timumama, the Chingiznama [58], the Tarikh-i Alfi, the Babumama,

and the Akhamama. As works of recent history or contemporary events, the last two required much greater topographical and narrative accuracy than was necessary for histories of the distant past, much less literary works. Babur was a keen naturalist with remarkably accurate powers of observation, and Akbar s own life was well documented. The illustrations for these works therefore, even if compositionally dependent on Persian models, are much more faithful to both nature and the material culture described in the books.

The penchant for using Indian motifs, natural forms, and plants as well as figurative types had also become necessary for the Hindu texts that Akbar wanted prepared in the 1580s. Akbar was a very eclectic man as well as being intellectually curious. Besides, he was the first Muslim ruler on the subcontinent to take a genuine interest in the culture, religion, and literature of the native population, especially of the Hindus, who formed the majority of his subjects. He had several of the better-known Hindu texts translated into Persian. From among them, the museum s collection include®

178

leaves from a Harivamsa [48], Somadevas Kathasaritsagara [51], a Ramayana [83], and a Razmnama {Mahabharata) [85]. While the Harivamsa and Kathasaritsagara leaves belonged to imperial copies of the books, the other two are probably from manuscripts done for such important courtiers as Abd ar-Rahim Khan Khanan. Akbar not only had copies made for himself but encouraged his grandees to own and read these Hindu texts in translation. Some orthodox Muslims may frown upon Akbar's expansive attitude, but the fact remains that for Akbar art served a variety of purposes, not the least of which was to apprehend the Creator. He sincerely believed that the Creator was responsible for the entire universe and not just one race or religious group. It is doubtful if any other patron has ever paid such a tribute to the artist as did Akbar when he said, as recorded by Abul Eizl, "It seems to me that a painter is better than most in gaining a knowledge of God. Each time he draws a living being he must draw each and every limb of it, but seeing that he cannot bring it to life must perforce give thought to the miracle wrought by the Creator and thus obtain a knowledge of Him."

Over forty years ago the eminent Islamic art historian E. Schroeder used this passage to support his assertion that Mughal art was not simply "the fruit of a wholly secular mentality" but was inspired by Akbar's intense spirituality. "Such knowledge [as alluded to in the above passage, wrote Schroeder], and such knowledge alone, can explain the infinite variety of carefulness which we see in the best early Mughal art. The masterpieces of portraiture, the unequalled representations of the animal world, could never be made, as any painter knows, except in self-forgetting love."^*^

The Mughal style was sired by Humayun but nurtured by Akbar, whose catholic tastes and liberal attitude were largely responsible for its distinctive character. Three very different aesthetic traditions contributed to the formation of the style. One was the Indian tradition with its diverse aesthetic modes, as seen in various paintings included here ([36] and FIG. 10, p. 26). The second was the Persian tradition, which was reintroduced directly by Iranian masters and through first-rate illuminated books rather than through mediocre works from Sultanate India or from provincial Iranian centers. The third and perhaps the most influential tradition was the European, which was introduced largely through engravings, illustrated Bibles, paintings, and perhaps textiles. European hangings, possibly tapestries, were adorning the court as early as the time of Humayun, and European pictures and prints may have been introduced through the Portuguese as early as the 1560s.

It is neither easy nor profitable to separate the various artistic tendencies that were finally synthesized in the fully formed Mughal style that emerged in the 1580s.

The Mughal pictures from between 1550 and 1570 that survive show tentative attempts at combining Persian formal and iconographie elements with native aesthetic norms and tastes. While the overall landscaping and compositional passages are derived from Persian pictures, the individual elements such as the flora and fauna are in keeping with local topography. The rock formations in Mughal painting never achieved the fantastically imaginary quality that one encounters in the great Persian paintings, and the trees are often local varieties, such as the mango or the plantain. The figures in Mughal painting are shown more often in profile than one encounters in Persian painting, and the figurai forms as well as attire are Indian rather than Persian. Mughal artists were much more concerned with actual appearances and with conveying the plasticity as well as the sensuousness of the forms than were their Persian counterparts. The coloring in Mughal pictures also differs notably from Persian paintings in tonality and intensity as well as in application. The depicted space is still shallow, and even in the Hamzanama the use of perspective is ill understood and faulty.

179

By comparison, if we look at the Harivamsa pictures of the 1580s [48} a work by Basawan [57], there can be little doubt that a dramatic change has taken place, particularly in the handling of space. The architecture is now presented three-dimensionally and individual figures and objects are more naturalistically modeled Landscape backgrounds were often taken directly from European work [74} and Et subjects and symbols were freely adopted [54]. Narrative themes are presented with verisimilitude, and the viewer is mentally drawn into a pictures pictorial space as if he or she is a direct witness of the action. The use of both foreshortening and shading to increase the representational accuracy of the picture was adopted from European worics ' which had reached the court by early 1580, when the Jesuits arrived. The fathers of the first Jesuit mission brought an illustrated Bible and presented a large painting of the Madonna to Akbar. They saw with the emperor an atlas that he had received earlier from Goa. It is possible that he may have received European pictures from Portuguese Goa even before 1580.

One of the painters who appears to have taken a particular interest in European techniques was Basawan. More studies of European works by him have sur-' vived than by any other Akbari artist (e.g., [54]), and his enthusiasm must have been infectious, as is clear both from Basawan's influence in the studio, especially after Abd as-Samad s departure in 1587, and from the large number of studies of European works that were made by imperial artists. Indeed Abul Fazl's statement that the paintings of the Mughal masters are in no way inferior to those by European artists clearly demonstrates how European painting had replaced Persian painting as the measure of excellence.

PAINTING UNDER JAHANGIR (r. 1605-27) Akbar died in 1605 and was succeeded on the throne by his eldest and only surviving son, Salim, who then assumed the title Nur ad-Din Muhammad Jahangir {Jahangir means "world seizer"). Like his two brothers, who died from overindulgence in liquor, drugs, and sensual pleasures, Jahangir was addicted to both wine and opium. More­over, he could not hold either his drink or his drug and became very cruel when inebriated. These weaknesses naturally interfered with his ability to govern the realm, and most of his battles were fought for him by his son Prince Khurram, later emperor Shah Jahan, and his generals. In 1611 Jahangir married a widow called Mihr-u-nisa and conferred upon her the title of Nur Jahan ("light of the world"). She remained a strong influence in his life, and by assuming many of the imperial duties, she allowed him greater leisure to indulge in his passions, one of which was admiring paintings.

It would not be an exaggeration to state that Jahangir was the only Indian collector, connoisseur, and aesthete in India's past in the way we understand those words today. Like his father, his curiosity was insatiable, and his emissaries were always on the lookout for exotic animals and objects for him. Like his great-grandfather Babur, he loved nature and was interested in it both poetically and scientifically. Also like Babur, Jahangit wrote a memoir that is remarkably intimate and candid, although not as elegant and literary as Babur's. It is a good source, however, for illuminating Jahangir's aesthetic taste, which was responsible for guiding Mughal painting in a new direction.

Among the several allusions to painting in his memoirs, two passages are particularly revealing and relevant. Even though quoted often, they are well worth repeating, as they not only inform us about Jahangir's visual acuity but also why Mughal painting took a new turn under his patronage.

In one he claims to have become such an expert in distinguishing individu^ styles of painting that when a work was brought before him he could immediately

180

recognize the hand without being given the artist's name, whether the artist were dead or alive. 'And if there be a picture containing many portraits, and each face be the work of a different master, I can discover which face is the work of each of them," he claimed.

Such claims not only reflect Jahangir's self-confidence in his extraordinary ability to judge a work of art but also introduce us to a new kind of connoisseurship. To Jahangir the individual skill and self-expression of the artist were both recognizable and important traits in a work of art. For this reason he was less fond of large books that were the result of cooperative effort. He commissioned fewer illustrated manuscripts and in those that he did he preferred that an artist should work alone on an illustration, which would inspire him to produce more inventive and expressive compositions. Jahangir clearly favored individual pictures to books and had such paintings assembled in sumptuous albums along with masterpieces of Persian calligraphy. The outer borders of these calligraphic pages were often illustrated by artists of his choice with genre subjects that allowed the artists great freedom of expression. Thus in this instance too the artists could express themselves in a more idiosyncratic and original manner than they could under Akbar.

Jahangir's second frequently quoted allusion to painting is in regard to the illness and death of Inayat Khan, one of his favorite courtiers and like him addicted to opium. Upon hearing that his friend was about to die, Jahangir had him brought to the court. The following passage from his memoirs records his reaction:

He appeared so low and weak that I was astonished. "He was skin drawn over hones" Or rather his bones, too, had dissolved. Though painters have striven much in drawing an emaciated face, yet I have never seen anything like this, nor even approaching to it. Good God, can a son of man com to such a shape and fashion? ... As it was a very extraordinary case I directed painters to take his portrait. . . . Next day he travelled the road of non-existence.

This kind of almost clinical interest in the world around him is evidenced by both his memoirs and surviving pictures. Jahangir took the same interest in the dying Inayat Khan, in his arch-rival Shah Abbas of Iran, in a turkey, and in the beautiful flowers he observed in his beloved Kashmir. When he dispatched an embassy to Shah Abbas, he sent along Bishandas (see {68]), one of his best portraitists, to take the ruler's portrait so that he could become better acquainted with his Iranian counterpart. When he was amazed to see a turkey or was thrilled with the spring flowers in Kashmir, he ordered one of his master artists, Mansur, to paint these marvels of nature. Observed realism, physical accuracy, and psychological insight were extremely important to Jahangir, and he was fortunate enough to have in his workshop a number of highly talented artists who could give him satisfaction.

A sensitive drawing in which the emperor is presented as he must have appeared to the artist [73] displays the kind of unvarnished truth that Jahangir preferred. Similarly, the rich assortment of marginalia with their vivid studies of men engaged in various activities {55] are excellent examples of the kind of psychological penetration that Jahangir expected to see in representations of human beings. The animal and flower studies done for him also reflect a lively accuracy and fidelity to nature unknown in Akbari painting.

Although we do not know how early in his life Jahangir's love for painting was manifested, there is no doubt that by 1588/89, when he was in his early twenties, the prince already had artists working for him and had developed a taste for Iranian pictures. In that year, or a little earlier, Aqa Riza had come to Agra from Iran and entered Akbar's

181

employ. Moreover, one of Prince Salim's closest friends, perhaps from his childhood Muhammad Sharif, the son of the Iranian master Abd as-Samad. By 1600, when ur to wait any longer for the crown. Prince Salim rebelled and set up his own court at Allahabad, Aqa Riza became the most influential figure in the princes studio. The s' functioned until 1604, when Salim returned to Agra to be near his dying father. In addition to Aqa Riza, his son Abul Hasan as well as another Iranian painter named Mirza Ghulam are known to have worked at Allahabad. The collection has at least two paint ings that certainly were done for Salim during the Allahabad period [65A, 66], while a third [64] may also be added to the group.

Partly because of Aqa Rizas presence and partly because of Salim s own tas there is a strong Iranian element discemable in the pictures painted at Allahabad. This Î is evident particularly in the greater delicacy and refinement of both the drawing and coloring as well as the introduction of typically Persianate themes such as the inebriar prince, with its metaphorical connotation [66]. Simultaneously, however, the strong influence exerted by European engravings available at the court is visible in a greater concern with the shading of the garments as well as the figurai forms in the works of the Jahangiri and the Akbari studios during the decade before Akbar's death. That the prince continued to admire European works is supported not only from the observations of foreign visitors and descriptions of murals decorating the palaces but also from the fact that even such a conservative Iranian painter as Aqa Riza began to copy European prints . after joining Prince Salim s studio, as is evidenced by the Gulshan Album in Tehran. 20

Nowhere is Jahangir's love of both the Persian and European manners more clearly manifest than in the decorations of the margins of the album pages. The very idea of the album containing fine examples of calligraphy and paintings was borrowed from Iran, and although we do know that Humayun possessed albums, we do not know what was in them. We do know, however, that Akbar had assembled albums containing portraits of his courtiers. What is different about the Jahangiri albums is the enormous diversity of their contents, which reflects his insatiable curiosity. This diversity is apparent not only in the pictures themselves but even more so in the margins. Here we witness the bold juxtaposition of styles and traditions in a novel manner. The background is oftc" densely filled with rich arabesques or scrolling vines inhabited by fauna or with golden landscapes in a predominantly Iranian mode over which the master artists of Jahangir such as Govardhan, Daulat, and others—have painted most lively, accurate, and intimately observed vignettes of men and women engaged in various activities. These are the true miniatures of Indian painting and are often more expressive and appealing emotionally than the larger pictures they surround. While the technical sophistication required for these representations was derived from European works, their thematic freshness and anecdotal directness must be attributed in a large measure to Jahangir s discriminating taste. Especially when these border representations depict ordinary peopk

absorbed in everyday activities, the vignettes have been rendered appropriately with ^ unglamourized spontaneity, which makes them particularly delightful {55]. |

Nothing could provide a greater contrast to the unaffected simplicity of • these naturalistic gems on the album leaves' outer borders than the symbolic portrait of Jahangir in the collection [72], This type of allegorical and highly artificial portrait

began to appear after 1615, the year Sir Thomas Roe arrived at the court as ambassador

of the British monarch James i (r. 1603—25). He brought with him examples of English allegorical portraits that apparently intrigued Jahangir, who ordered his artists to adopt

the idea. From this time until his death twelve years later, Jahangir virtually ruled as a figurehead and much of the power was assumed by his astute queen Nur Jahan. Thus

182

1 n % of Abul Hasan, from a border

)n in the Gulshan Album, ilat, Mughal, c. 1605-9,

6 watercolor on paper. Imperial iy, Tehran (after Godard 1936,

I of Manohar, from a border ^tion in the Gulshan Album,

Mughal, c. 1605-9, Ç watercolor on paper, Imperial

> Tehran (after Godard 1936,

one can understand why such symbolic and flattering portraits, where he is portrayed not only as larger than life but as a divine figure, should have had particular appeal.

The collection contains one work bearing the names of two Jahangiri artists. This is a page from a Shahnama showing the collaboration of Bishandas and Inayat [68]. Not much is known about Inayat, who worked on the 1605 Akhamama and painted a beautiful study of a mountain goat now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. In one of the Akhamama pictures he is referred to as khanazada, "house-born," but his father's identity is not known. Bishandas, however, is a more familiar figure and was one of the leading painters of Jahangir's atelier; he was personally selected by the emperor to accompany his ambassador to Iran in 1613. In the words of Jahangir himself:

At the time when I sent Khan Alam to Persia, I had sent with him a painter of the name ofBishn Das, who was unequalled in his age for taking likenesses, to take the portraits of the Shah and the chief men of his State, and hring them. He had drawn the likenesses of most of them, and especially had taken that of my brother the Shah exceedingly well, so that when I showed it to any of his servants, they said it was exceedingly well drawn.

It is interesting that despite expressing his confidence in Bishandas's talent, Jahangir had to have others verify how authentic the Shah's portrait was. This again shows how exacting Jahangir was on truthfulness in portraiture. He had never met the Shah and needed a penetrating psychological portrait to get to know him.

Among the other master painters of Jahangir who are represented in the collection are Abul Hasan [72, possibly 66], Manohar [60, possibly 73], and Govardhan {55B, 71]. Abul Hasan (FIG. 22), who was house-bom, was undoubtedly the closest to the emperor and much admired. He was born after his father, Aqa Riza, joined Prince Salim's studio. Abul Hasan was honored with the title nadir al-zaman, "wonder of the age," and in his memoirs Jahangir praises him lavishly and says unequivocally that "at the present time he has no rival or equal." His earliest surviving work is a drawing of Saint John copied from an engraving by Albrecht Dürer, the European artist most admired by the Mughals, now in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. Abul Hasan was only thirteen at the time. Not only does the drawing reveal how precocious he was, it also indicates how early he began studying European techniques, which he adapted with much greater assurance than his father. He was the first Mughal artist to understand the importance of shadows and was able to convincingly explore the interplay of light and shadows on the surfaces of objects in his pictures. From a portrait surviving in the Gulshan Album, we know that he was left-handed. He appears to have worked for a while for Shah Jahan early in his reign, but nothing is known of him thereafter.

Although not house-bom, Manohar (FIG. 23) was also the son of a famous father, the Akbari master Basawan. He was probably bom in the 1560s, and no work by him after Jahangir's reign has been recognized. He obviously received his early training from his father, following whom he became very interested in European works, which is evident from the charming study of two youths attributed to him in the collection {60}, which may have been done for Prince Salim. The Gulshan Album includes a portrait of him, painted by Daulat early in Jahangir's reign. He must have then been in his forties and appears in robust health. Although not as sophisticated in his technique as Abul Hasan, Manohar was a versatile artist, as was his father, and was equally at home with manuscript illustrations, portraiture, and animal paintings. A. K. Das called him the most prolific of all Jahangiri artists, and the large number of his surviving works reveal his extraordinary range and quality sustained over four decades.

183

Like Abul Hasan, Govardhan was a house-born artist, having been bom while his father, Bhavani Das, was working for Akbar. He must have been bom in the early eighties, as his earliest known pictures are in the 1604 Akhamama. It is possible that he was recruited early for Prince Salim's studio, for like Abul Hasan, Govardhan strongly influenced by European works. There is the further possibility that besides his father he was trained by Basawan, from whom he may have acquired his penchant for drawing holy men. Although Jahangir has nothing to say about him, Govardhan's studies of people are among the most sensitive and insightful in all Mughal art. As M. Beach has remarked, "no other Mughal artist of the period celebrates, with such sympathy and insight, the variety of humanity found in India."He was equally at home in depicting princes [71}, holy men [74], and people from all walks of life engaged in a variety of mundane activities [55B]. It should be noted, though, that very few signed works by this highly talented and somewhat eccentric artist have survived, and most of the paintings are attributions. However, his is one of the few highly individual styles that can be fairly easily recognized.

PAINTING UNDER SHAH JAHAN (r. 1628-58) After eliminating his brothers, Prince Khurram succeeded his father in 1628, taking the title Shahab ad-Din Muhammad Shah Jahan {Shah Jahan means "world ruler"). He ruled for three decades, until one of his sons deposed him, and from 1658 until his death in 1666 Shah Jahan spent his years as a prisoner at the Agra Fort. His principal consolation during his confinement was the fact that from the palace he could admire his favorite building, the Taj Mahal. Partly because of the Taj and other highly visible architectural accomplishments, and partly because he did not leave any memoirs with copious comments about artists or the art of painting as his father did. Shah Jahan's interest in painting has been generally overlooked in histories of the Mughal art. A recent assessment of Shah Jahan as a patron of painting by J. Dye makes an important contribution in redressing this imbalance. Like his grandfather Akbar, to whom he was very close. Shah Jahan's interest in the arts was wide ranging. Doubtless his principal passions were precious stones and architecture, but he was also interested in illustrated books and paintings. In fact, by the age of fourteen he had an album assembled for himself, and many paintings survive on which the names of the artists or his reaction to the work are recorded in his own hand.

Shah Jahan, however, was different in personality from both his father and grandfather. Although he was a more orthodox Muslim than both, he was not a bigot, as is clearly evident from his fondness for and approval of his liberal, philosopher son _ Dara Shikoh and his disapproval of the more austere but competent Aurangzeb. Like h" grandfather, Shah Jahan was a brilliant military strategist and a man of action, but he .• lacked Akbar's open-mindedness and visionary qualities. He strongly disapproved of his father's indolent and lazy nature but was less spirited and down-to-earth than his ^ grandfather. A formal man, he took the business of being an emperor very seriously.

Shah Jahan would, in fact, have been a perfect ruler for the age of television.

He was a man who believed in his own destiny (after all, he had been born in the auspicious year of the millennium of the Islamic calendar and under the same conjunction

of the planets as his great ancestor Timur), in his place in history, and in the power of image rather than substance. To him the universe was a paradise and he was at its center. And so his court, his architecture, and his paintings are all reflections of an idealized

world rather than the real one. As Dye has pointed out. Shah Jahan continued some of r^e innovations of the Jahangir era, such as the polished refinement and technical virtuosity, ^ preference for individual paintings rather than manuscripts, and to a limited extent, the

184

rait of Bichitr, detail of his Preferring a Sufi Shaykh to

Mughal, c. 1615-18, Opaque •olor and gold on paper, lo x 7 Vs

X 18.1 cm), Freer Gallery of iithsonian Institution, ¡fWï» D.C., 42.15.

thematic categories, but otherwise Shah Jahani pictures reflect a dramatically different perception of the world. For instance, Shah Jahan was not as keen a naturalist as Jahangir and hence there are fewer animal and nature studies from the period. When we do encounter them, as in the margins of the albums [77-79], they are competently rendered but lack the spontaneity and freshness of Jahangiri works. Formal representations of courtly life from Shah Jahan's reign are more numerous than from the reigns of his two predecessors. Style rather than substance, outward appearance rather than inner character, decorative exuberance rather than restraint, technical virtuosity rather than spontaneous expressiveness are some of the salient features of Shah Jahani paintings.

There was apparently no change in the functioning of the imperial atelier under Shah Jahan. Early in his reign at least two manuscripts were commissioned, one of which, a Gulistan of Sadi, was sent to King Charles I as a gift. Several sumptuous albums that included a variety of pictures and portraits as well as superb examples of calligraphy (e.g., [77-79]) were prepared for the emperor. Unlike those in Jahangir's albums, the figures in the margins of the royal portraits in these albums seem to relate to the person depicted. Shah Jahan's eldest son, Dara Shikoh, was also a patron of painting and had assembled an album of brilliant pictures for his wife, which is now in the India Office Library, London. The crowning achievement of Shah Jahan's artists, however, is the magnificently illustrated history of his reign, the Padshahnama, now at Windsor Castle. Although lacking the drama and vigor of the Akhamama manuscripts or the technical brilliance and subtlety of the Jahangimama, it remains a landmark in Mughal painting for its ostentation and cool elegance.

Shah Jahan inherited a number of his father's artists, such as Abul Hasan, Manohar, and Govardhan. In addition to Govardhan, whose picture of four mullas [74] may well have been painted for Shah Jahan, other Shah Jahani artists to whom works in the collection may be attributed are Bichitr [75, 775], Hashim [76], and Balchand [783]. Except for Govardhan's characteristic study of the religious teachers, all these works are portraits from imperial albums. Govardhan's picture shows how well the Mughal artists had assimilated European elements by this time. As a matter of fact, the days of faddish interest in European pictures were over and no longer were European works regarded as novelties. Shah Jahan was less impressed than Akbar or Jahangir with the Europeans, their religion, or their art. The Shah Jahani artists were better able to integrate technical elements of European pictures in a less self-conscious manner. They also made subtle uses of European symbolic motifs and devices to express Shah Jahan's idea of divine kingship or the divine right to rule.

Little or nothing is known about Bichitr except that from his name and his self-portrait in a painting in the Freer Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. (FIG. 24), one can deduce he was a Hinda He probably joined Jahangir's workshop, perhaps even in Allahabad, but his earliest work is of about 1615-20 and the latest of about 1645-50. After the departure of Abul Hasan, Bichitr must have been the leading painter of formal portraits for Shah Jahan. Although his portraits are said to be somewhat cold, there can be no doubt about his technical brilliance. Indeed, among the works of all Shah Jahani artists Bichitr's formal but sumptuous pictures, such as the meeting between Shah Shuja and Gaj Singh [75] and a portrait of the emperor himself that is possibly by the artist [77], best express Shah Jahan's aesthetic preferences. Although the former picture describes a historical occasion, the introduction of the two cherubs holding a canopy above clearly reflects the emperor's obsession with paradisiacal symbolism. Every detail of the picture reflects the opulence of the court, yet there is an almost palpable chill in the air. Similarly, in the portrait Shah Jahan's divine image is emphasized not only by the

185

halo—which Jahangir had introduced into imperial portraiture, possibly from Euro sources—but also by the highly idealized and flawless form and the impassive iconi^ expression. These characteristics are also found in a later picture in the collection 1650 [79], when Shah Jahan was sixty-two years old. Except for the white beard his f" shows no wrinkles and he seems hardly to have aged. Shah Jahan was very vain and just as concerned about his appearance as he was about his portraits, all of which he probably personally inspected and approved. This portrait is very similar to another from the same album that is signed by Hashim. ̂ 6

Whether or not the later Shah Jahan portrait in the collection is by Hash" most scholars attribute the impressive representation of Mirza Rustam Safavi [76] to hin, According to some Hashim may have been a Deccani artist who migrated to the Mughal court sometime during Jahangir s reign. 27 One reason for this suggestion is the survival of several portraits by him of Deccani personalities. However, the majority of his works portraits of single figures, show very little direct Deccani influence. Whatever Deccani' traits are discemible could very well have been adopted from Deccani pictures available at the Mughal court. In a fresh assessment of his work, J. Seyller very convincingly downplays the Deccani association and describes Hashim as an important artist who contributed significantly to perpetuating the established conventions of formal Mughal ! portraiture during the reigns of Jahangir and Shah Jahan without exhibiting undue concern about psychological nuances.

PAINTING DURING THE AURANGZEB PERIOD (r. 1658-1707) After deposing his father and waging a bloody fratricidal war in which he eliminated all his brothers, Aurangzeb occupied the throne in 1658 and took the title Muhyi ad-Din Muhammad Alamgir {Alamgir means "seizer of the universe"). He ruled for half a century, but the long reign was not encouraging for artistic production. A severe and orthodox man, Aurangzeb shunned luxuries and ostentation. Preoccupied as he was wi economic and military problems, he had little interest in art and architecture. In a letter written in 1663, F. Bernier, who traveled in India between 1658 and 1663, painted a dismal picture of the state of the arts in Delhi in general, although he does state that "the artists . . . who arrive at any eminence in their art are those only who are in the ser­vice of the King or of some powerful Omrah (courtier), and who work exclusively for their patron."29 The imperial atelier was thus still functioning, perhaps to produce Korans and official pictures. The history of Mughal painting under Aurangzeb is only vaguely known, and what can be said is that his indifference if not dislike for the art of painting had a beneficial effect on the development of the art in the Rajput courts.

Although a few pictures in the collection do belong to this period {80-82], there is no certainty that they were rendered at the imperial atelier or for the imperial collection. As a matter of fact, almost no scholarly work has been done on the production of painting in the imperial atelier during Aurangzeb s reign. It is generally believed that early in his reign Aurangzeb continued his predecessors' practice of patronizing painting, but slowly his attitude changed, and by the time he left for the Deccan in 1680 for a campaign, he had disbanded the studio for all practical purposes. The Deccan in fact remained Aurangzeb's principal obsession, and although he did succeed in annexing rhe region before his death, it proved to be a costly conquest. In the process the Mughal

empire was ruined financially, and its subsequent decline was irreversible. Some court artists, those that were retained, moved with the emperor to

the Deccan, some probably remained behind in Agra and Delhi to do freelance work whatever local patrons there were, and others moved to the provinces to work for both

186

Hindu and Muslim courts. It is also believed that those artists who went to the Deccan with the emperor naturally came in contact with Deccani artists and their works. As a result, the Mughal and Deccani traditions mutually influenced each other. One or two works in the collection [iioA, IIIB] may, in fact, reflect this exchange or assimilation of stylistic traits.

The portrait of Shah Alam, who succeeded Aurangzeb as Emperor Bahadur Shah I, was probably painted in Delhi or Agra shortly before Aurangzeb's departure for the Deccan [81]. The quality of the work points to its having been done by a court artist, perhaps for the prince himself A second picture [80], dated 1674/75, which found its way into an album presented in the eighteenth century to Lord Clive, may well have been painted by an artist of the imperial studio, as it is an accomplished picture with the physical likeness of the sitter sensitively rendered. Less difficult to place is the portrait of Bibi Ferzana [82], which is stylistically close to several similar portraits attributed to the second half of the seventeenth century. Adequately painted, such female portraits are perfectly acceptable renderings of the subjects' appearance but lack both the psychological expressiveness of the Jahangiri portraits and the sumptuous but formal elegance of Shah Jahani representations. This type of idealized portrait of beautiful women, mostly cour­tesans, was introduced during the Shah Jahan period and continued to be popular. Except for portraits few other types of pictures of the period have survived, and the age of both richly illustrated manuscripts and lavishly assembled albums appears to have been over.

NONIMPERIAL MUGHAL PAINTINGS

Although the Mughal emperors were the principal patrons, there were others who commissioned or acquired illustrated books or individual pictures. The corpus of such works is not vast, and no systematic study about them has yet appeared. They are categorized in several different ways, such as provincial, popular, subimperial, or bazaar Mughal, but the differences between these are not always clear.

Around i960 two basic styles of Mughal painting were recognized. In the words of P. Chandra:

A/ong with the refined and luxurious style of the Mughal court that was fostered in royal ateliers by imperial patrons there grew up a popular version of the same style patronised by the nobility, the commercial classes and others. For lack of better terminology they are referred to in this article as the Imperial and Popular Mughal styles respectively. The Popular Mughal style took on various aspects and forms, some close to the parent style, some apparently removed from it, but both of them heavily dependent on it.

In 1973 E. Binney, 3rd, employed the category "subimperial style" in his catalogue of his own collection.As Binney wrote, " 'Popular Mughal' suggests a vulgar appeal to the masses which the sophistication of many of the examples belies. The 'Sub-Imperial Style,' a term coined by W. G. Archer, exactly describes the resultant pictures, varying from excellent painting to hackwork." (Binney does not, however, cite a source for Archer.)

To these two categories L. Y Leach has added a third, "bazaar Mughal." ̂ 2

her opinion subimperial pictures are less refined than but are related to those produced in the imperial ateliers and were generally done for the nobility. Popular Mughal pictures were rendered for "the next social level of patronage" and are "generally bright-colored, vital, and stiff" Technically, they are not as sophisticated as the imperial or subimperial pictures and reveal an aesthetic sensibility that is in keeping with the traditional mode of

187

k 1 Indian painting before the birth of the naturalistic Mughal style. Her next category bazaar Mughal style, represents inexpensive works rendered with a limited range These were apparently produced quickly in the bazaars of Agra or Delhi and "sold in great numbers from shops to townspeople for gifts, decorations, and so on." Although this may be a valid classification of nonimperial Mughal pictures, unfortunately ' illustrates only one bazaar Mughal work, in the Cleveland Museum of Art, and noth similar exists in the Los Angeles collection. It would be less confusing therefore to • to the two categories of subimperial and popular Mughal styles, to which most of the nonimperial Mughal pictures in the museums collection belong.

Of the museum s subimperial pictures, the name of only one patron is known. He was Abd ar-Rahim Khan Khanan, from whose copy of the Razmnama two folios aw " 10 the collection [85]. Abd ar-Rahim, the Khan Khanan (commander in chief), was one of the most important courtiers during Akbar s reign, but he did not get along as well with Jahangir. He was very much a character in Akbar s mold, being a man of action as well as of culture. An avid bibliophile and a poet, he maintained a library well stocked with books, some of which were produced in his own workshop. However, he moved about a good deal, as he was given various appointments as governor of different provinces, and so must have been largely dependent on local talent. Although the names of several of artists have survived, they were not the most eminent; the best in the realm naturally were attached to the imperial atelier. Nevertheless, many of the Khan Khanan's artists were loyal to him, for some of them worked on both his Ramayana, completed in 1598 (now in the Freer Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.), and the Razmnama painted almost two decades later. In fact, when he wanted his own illustrated copy of the Ramayana, he borrowed Akbar's copy to be used as a model by his artists. The style of his copy of the Razmnama, prepared between about 1615 to 1620, looks back to the Akbar-period Ramayana and reflects little awareness of contemporary Mughal painting that was being done for Jahangir. Clearly the Khan Khanan was not as passionately keen about paintings as were Akbar and Jahangir. This seems to have been generally true of most subimperial Mughal patrons. Most were more interested in books than in individual paintings as well as being unable to utilize the best artists.

There are two folios in the collection [83] from a Ramayana rendered in the subimperial style which is earlier than the Khan Khanan's Ramayana. It is not known who the owner of this manuscript was, but that he was a Hindu is evident from the feet that the text is in the original Sanskrit. The style of the illustrations makes it clear that the patron was close to the Mughal court and, although a Hindu, his taste was strongly influenced by the Mughal aesthetic. The artists who worked on this Ramayana were clearly familiar with imperial book production and may well have used a royal copy as a model, as was the case with the Khan Khanan's copy of the Ramayana. Like the earlier Ramayana, the Story of Sukra and Rambha [88] must have been done for a Hindu or Jain patron, but its style is not quite as sophisticated or naturalistic as that in which the two Hindu epics have been painted. This illuminated manuscript page is better characterized as popular rather than subimperial Mughal.

More difficult to place are three illustrations from two different Shahnan ̂manuscripts [84, 86]. This Persian epic was popular with Muslim patrons of Iranian

origin in India. The 1608 Shahnama picture [84] does echo elements of the imperial style but is more stridently colored. It uses an unusual shade of yellow that is not found m imperial manuscripts and is more akin to the brighter tonality encountered in popular Mughal pictures. Although the compositions of this picture and of paintings from othef

fhc similar Shahnamas rely strongly on Persian models, the figurai types, the costumes,

188

coloring, and the treatment of natural forms are distinctly Indian. The two illustrations in the collection from another Shahnama [86] are less elegant, and their landscape ele­ments are quite coarse and archaic versions of Persian motifs. The coloring has neither the rich subtlety of imperial Mughal pictures nor the robust quality of the 1608 Shahnama. It is very likely that whereas the dated Shahnama was produced in Agra for one of the courtiers, the manuscript in the archaic style was done for a less affluent patron in a provincial center where the Mughal style was only vaguely familiar.

Apart from the illustrated page from the Story of Sukra and Rambha, all the examples of popular Mughal pictures in the collection illustrate poems describing musical modes. A musical mode is known as a raga and its derivatives as ragini, "wives of raga, " and ragaputra, "sons of raga. " The characteristics of each raga are described in verses in Sanskrit, Persian, and vernacular languages, which provided the artists with their verbal models. It is interesting that although music was appreciated by the Mughal royalty, no Ragamala (Garland of ragd) series rendered in an imperial style has yet come to light. All known Mughal-style Ragamala series have been executed in what is now regarded as the popular Mughal style, and the genre seems to have become fashionable early in the seventeenth century, although the tradition of Ragamala pictures is much older. Many stylistic elements are shared with the imperial Mughal style, but by and large these popular Mughal pictures display sparser and simpler compositions, looser draughtsman­ship, and less refined and subtle coloring. However, the popular Mughal idiom had a more direct bearing than the imperial Mughal style on the contemporaneous development of painting in the Rajput courts.

NOTES I . Schroeder 1947, p. 85.

2. See Brand & Lowry 1985, pp. 87— 105, for the collecting habits of the first three Mughals.

3. Ibid., pp. 88-92. The Juki Shahnama is in the Royal Asiatic Society, London, and the Zafamama in the University Library, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore (see Lentz & Lowry 1989, pp. 359, 338, for citations of studies of them).

4. Quoted in Beach 1987, p. 26.

5. Ibid.

6. Das 1978, p. 29.

7. For discussions of the develop­ment of early Mughal painting, see P. Chandra 1976; Brand & Lowry 1985; and Beach 1987.

8. Brand & Lowry 1985, pp. 27, 137; and Beach 1987, pp. 17—21.

9. Quoted in P. Chandra 1976, p. 180.

10. Quoted in ibid., pp. 182—83.

11. Quoted in ibid., p. 183-

12. Quoted in ibid., p. 182.

13. Quoted in ibid., pp. 183—84.

14. I am indebted to R. Skelton for this information.

15. Quoted in P. Chandra 1976, p. 184.

16. Schroeder 1947, p. 79.

17. E. R. Hambye, "The First Jesuit Mission to Emperor Akbar," in Islam in India: Studies and Commentaries, ed. C. W. Troll (New Delhi: Vikash Publishing House, 1982), pp. 3-13; see especially p. 11.

18. Rogers & Beveridge [1909-14I 1968, 2: 20-21.

19. Ibid., pp. 43-44.

20. Beach 1965.

21. Rogers & Beveridge [1909-14] 1968, 2: 116-17.

22. Ibid., p. 20.

23. Das 1978, pp. 188-92. For the latest assessment of Manohar, see Mclnemey 1991.

24. Beach 1978, p. 118.

25. Dye 1989.

26. Beach 1978, p. 127, no. 45.

27. See Seyller 1991, p. 118, n. i, for relevant citations.

28. Seyller 1991.

29. Bernier [1891} 1972, p. 254.

30. P. Chandra i960, p. 25.

31. Binney 1973, p. 57.

32. All quotations in this paragraph are from Leach 1986, pp. 106—7.

33. Vor Ramayana discussion of the Khan Khanan as a patron, see Beach 1981, pp. 128—55.

189